The present invention relates to remotely controlled power switching devices, and more particularly, to circuitry for selectively applying power to one or more of a group of load devices by toggling a remotely located manually operable switch.
The energy shortages which have occurred in recent years and corresponding increases in cost of energy, such as the electrical power supplied to residential structures, are well known. In response to the increased costs, many people have set their air-conditioning thermostats at higher temperatures to reduce energy consumption. Many people have also turned to the ceiling paddle-type fans for providing greater air circulation which greatly improves the comfort at the higher temperatures.
A problem which has increased the cost of installing these ceiling fans, especially in an existing structure, has been the additional wiring and control switches which must be installed. One way of avoiding the extra wiring costs is to remove a ceiling light fixture and install the fan in its place so that the original switch and wiring may be used for the fan. This approach has several deficiencies. The first is the obvious loss of the light fixture. Many fans are provided with a built-in light fixture but if the fan and light fixture are to be separately controlled, the additional line is still needed. Also, many of the ceiling fans have two or more speeds of operation so that a multiple position switch and extra cabling is normally required to allow selection of fan speed from the wall mounted switch. Thus, it can be seen that it would be desirable to provide an arrangement with which a ceiling fan may be installed in place of a single light fixture and multiple loads such as both the fan motor and a built-in light fixture could be selectively controlled from an originally installed manually operable switch connected to the fan by a single two-conductor transmission cable.